From the moment we wake up…have breakfast…taking in the splendor of the Inn…interiors and exteriors…all is a wonder…all is fine tuned…all is as accommodating as anyone can ask for…and more….

A morning walk …to see the homes..off the main road…the sheep ..a half dozen busy trimming the neighbors back lawn…and a stroll up a long driveway to the Williamsburg home of John D and Abby Rockefeller…and a tour…Rockefeller decided to help restore Williamsburg…but only if those asking made sure no one knew…which did not last for long …he ended up very much involved…eventually making this his home for some weeks in the summer and fall…adding onto the house…and so much more that he ended up contributing $68 million dollars ….http://www.history.org/almanack/places/hb/hbbass.cfm

The Governor’s Palace….who knew you could decorate your front hall in swords and muskets…. and they would work with interiors of elaborate moldings…and furnishings…large rooms…and fine silver ….outside was a maze… which would be a big hit with the visiting children…and entertainment for those who climbed upon a hill…that turned out to be the ice house…a creek…multiple gardens…dual..double seater outhouse with windows…a huge cellar …outside kitchen ….and many cottages…http://www.colonialwilliamsburg.net/almanack/places/hb/hbpal.cfm

The Lanthorn Tour…a wonderful hour…to follow a guide with a group after hours and visit local businesses…see what went into their professions…the wig maker…the silversmith….the bookbinder and the printer…the wigmaker…used animal and human hair…women had a choice…shave your head …and be able to sleep in a bed at night …or add hair to your own and sleep in a chair!…..The silversmith…provided ways to secure your money…a safe alternative to coins…for silver was monetary by weight…and a spoon with a stamp…made it easier to retrieve if stolen….the bookbinder was poorly paid…and made money on the side…selling used books…sermons…and such…the red dye..used for the books…the hair…and in lipstick today…came from red beetles!…the printer…made the paper out of ….underwear…cloth underwear…pummeled until it turned into lint…then put in water…and strained until it became paper…used for all 3 papers of the day…all called the Virginia Gazette…(HMMMM…BYTHE SEA)…..of real interest from the tour guide…some homes are private …inquiring about who lives in them she said they are employees…and she had lived in one for 11 years…they are set up with wi-fi and cable… there are 50 who have the chance out of 2660 employees…and then went on to say she had started here in 1964…and had many jobs throughout her employment….http://www.history.org/visit/eventsAndExhibits/calendar/index.cfm?id=273088&startAt

The Ghost Tour…really topped off the day…another “lifer”…tour guide who said she has worked here since she was 10!…3 stories …told by actors…of haunting ghosts the Wythe House….in the main house…the death of the wife of the owner after finding her husband with her sister…a struggle …that led to her falling down the main stairs to her death…the sister…who told the story…then married the straying husband…but joined her late sister in meeting the same stairway fall…sometime later…another story…in the another area…about a preacher righting the murder of a young woman…and giving her a final resting place after her murderer was hung……and the final ghost tale…a mother’s grief with the loss of her only child …a girl who rather than marry at age 16…found her way aboard a ship…posing as a man…only to be found out…and when the shipmates declared her a curse…threw her overboard to her death…she came back to find her mother…and show her the way…to meet her maker...http://www.williamsburgprivatetours.com/ghost.htm

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